The present invention pertains to bait holders for fishing hooks, and more particularly pertains to such a holder for holding live bait (e.g., an earthworm) in a manner to avoid killing the live bait prematurely.
It is well known that live bait for fishing is much superior to artificial or dead bait. A major reason for this is that live bait wriggles, squirms and otherwise moves about, thereby attracting fish. Conversely, dead and artificial bait, being motionless except for movement caused by the fisherman or by water currents, do not attract fish nearly as readily.
A number of devices are presently known that attempt to hold earthworms and/or other "live" bait. However, these known devices all hold the bait either directly against the fishhook shank, or by and against spring wire. Of these devices, those shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,115,493 and 2,454,879 hold an earthworm in a plurality of places, such that very little fish attracting movement is permitted, not to mention the fact that the worm is held by steel wire which tends to cut into the worm, thereby killing it prematurely.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,559,409 shows a device that holds a worm between the shanks of three connected hooks. It, too, tends to cut into the worm when sufficient force is applied to the shanks to retain a wriggly worm in position. U.S. Pat. No. 2,982,049 shows a device that is intended to hold live bait by means of a slip-noose of fine wire. Obviously, a fine wire slip-noose tight enough to hold a wriggling earthworm will also cut into the worm, thus rendering it lifeless and unappealing to fish.
Thus, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a bait holder for fishing hooks that retains live bait therein without tending to cut into said bait (e.g., an earthworm), in order that said live bait may remain alive.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such a bait older that will permit said live bait to freely wriggle about in order to more readily attract fish.